Chico >> When members of Chico High’s class of 2018 collects their diplomas in June, they will be the first to graduate at the school’s new stadium.

Chico High has held graduation at the nearby University Stadium for at least 30 years, but that will change in 2018. Despite some delays due to weather, the transformation of the old track and field facility into a stadium is underway and scheduled for completion in late February.

“The stadium project is moving along really well,” Chico Unified School District Facilities and Construction Director Julie Kistle said. “We are on track to finish in early February, and the stadium lights are all up and the scoreboard is up and that’s pretty exciting.”

The Chico High stadium project includes an electrical upgrade to the site as well as new lighting, a scoreboard, a flagpole, the addition of home and visitor bleachers, a new stadium entry with a ticket booth, restroom and concession building, and a new accessible path at the stadium, among other upgrades.

The lights were installed earlier this month along with the scoreboard. Work continues on the bleachers and fencing around the track. The home-side bleachers and the modular building that will house concessions, a ticket stand and the restroom will be installed last.

The district had initially hoped to complete the project by November so that the school’s varsity football team would be able to play at least one game on the new field before the end of the season. The Division of the State Architect took more time than expected to approve the project, Kistle said, which pushed back its expected date of completion.

While the team wasn’t able to play a game on the field, players were able to practice on the field.

The field has remained open despite the construction. The district has brought in temporary bleachers for soccer and field hockey games but was unable to do so for football as that typically brings in more spectators, Kistle said.

Construction will continue on the site for the coming months with a goal of finishing the project in February, weather permitting.

“It’s looking pretty good, but weather is definitely going to be difficult,” Kistle said. “We still have a pretty aggressive schedule.”

Kistle added: “We should be done in plenty of time for graduation. It will be a really big deal for students to graduate at their own stadium. They can say they were the first.”

Dani Anguiano covers education and the city of Chico for the Chico Enterprise-Record. The Sacramento native is an alumna of Chico State University and holds a master's degree from Northwestern University. She started at the E-R in 2015 after reporting for publications in Sacramento and Chicago.